A Weekend in Herefordshire

New Year’s Eve (NYE) is one of my favourite times of the year. It is filled with fireworks, amazing food, champagne… More importantly, is a time when you can spend it with close friends and loved ones. In 2016, Jack and I wanted to spend NYE in a chalet. We had discussed it before, but never got around doing. Jack has family around the Shropshire/ Herefordshire area, and we adore the countryside there. After looking for a while, we stumbled across a beautiful chalet located just by Ledbury. From the photos it looked perfect and led to a magical weekend in Herefordshire.

John & Gill’s lovely chalet – photo from AirBnB

Arriving at the Chalet

For weeks, we were counting down the days to our weekend, and eventually it came around. We decided to get an early train so that we could make the most of the two nights that we were staying. We left Reading feeling excited and not really knowing what to expect. The journey unfortunately was a disaster, and featured delayed trains and runaway sausage rolls.

Eventually however, we arrived at Ledbury train station and were picked up by one of our hosts, Gill. Immediately, we felt so welcomed to their home and property. As I’m sure you’ll agree, this always makes such a difference. After five minutes or so we arrived at the chalet, and I can honestly say it looked perfect. We were greeted by a roaring fire and our other host, John, who was equally as lovely. Upon inspecting the property, our hosts had left us a tonne of fresh eggs, milk, bread and butter. Most impressively though, a homemade ginger cake was gifted to us, which was incredibly tasty. Adding to this further still, they had even bought us a bottle of prosecco, which was a truly lovely gesture.

Without a doubt, this was one of the best welcomes I have ever had. A perfect way to begin our weekend in Herefordshire.

The Chalet Interior

Now on to the chalet itself. The majority of the building was open plan. There was a large area designated to a cosy sofa next to the roaring fire, and a kitchen/dining area. The amount of space was incredible, and it truly felt like a home. The look was quintessentially British country, with timeless beams holding up the roof. The fire also kept us nice and cosy, whilst adding to the atmosphere.

Within this sitting-area was a flight of stairs that led to a small area at the top. This was still part of the open-plan, but was equipped with beanbags and skylights which made for the most amazing DVD viewing gallery. The den area was also surprisingly spacious, and was one of our favourite spots in the chalet.

Next to the fireplace was a large wooden door which led to the bedroom. The bed was queen-sized, and had a really warm mattress topper and feathered quilt. It really was the best winter bed imaginable. Next to the bedroom was a small ensuite, equipped with a large shower. This was all very modern, yet maintained that old-fashioned English countryside atmosphere. It was exactly what we wanted from a place to stay.

Celebrating NYE in Herefordshire

As we arrived on NYE, we had to decide how to spend the evening. We thought we would start with our favourites; a halloumi burger. This is our ‘go-to’ dish if we are ever peckish, and was perfect to start off our celebrations. As well as this we had chocolate cake, Doritos (tangy cheese, obviously), chocolates, a variety of cheeses and those sausage rolls that had not tried to escape. We also played a few games of cards and scrabble, and then decided to binge-watch some tv. It was nice just to do the simple things, and treat the chalet as a house and home, something that made it truly special.

With us two usually being incapable of staying up late, we impressed ourselves by staying up until midnight, before falling into a food-coma. The next day we awoke to a feast of scrambled eggs, salmon and toast, and so kicking off 2017 in style. We also decided to go for an exploration, and began walking around the wilderness to see what we could find. The countryside was filled with rolling hills, formidable trees and sheep… so many sheep. Escaping the busy town of Reading and entering this paradise was truly special, and was something I dearly missed once I entered back into reality.

Having been for an explore, and got very wet from the sudden rainstorm that got us, we decided that we desperately wanted to put our feet up by the fire and get under a blanket to watch a favourite film of ours, Forest Gump. This was a perfect end to our weekend in Herefordshire, and to start the New Year. The next morning, I woke knowing that I would have to leave the world of dreams and slip back into reality.

Final Thoughts

Our weekend in Herefordshire unfortunately went so quickly, and felt like it was over almost instantly. As we left the chalet, I realised how lucky we were to have found such a wonderful place, which enabled us to escape the real world and enter our own little pocket of paradise. I would thoroughly recommend this place to anybody who wants a weekend break with their partner; words cannot describe how much Jack and I enjoyed every second of it.

Thank you once again to John and Gill for a wonderful stay in their chalet!

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Happy exploring!

Love Victoria X